The past century has not been kind to Afghanistan, nor to its people. Colonial interference, external and internal conflict, drought, famine, and international isolation have devastated the infrastructure and morale of a once prosperous nation. Not so long ago-at the end of the 1970s-the country was self-sufficient in food production and had a growing economy. But 30 years of struggle against political and natural threats have left Afghanistan badly crippled. Following the ouster of the Taliban, massive international aid is beginning to flow into the country, providing food and other relief to the millions of Afghans who have lost their livelihoods and been displaced from their homes. This five-year project proposes something different, and considerably more ambitious: to restore Afghan agriculture to its previous self-sufficiency, and to rebuild its national capacity to generate agricultural technologies that address the unique needs of the country- Afghans helping Afghans for Afghanistan. The project will focus on improving the quality of livestock (cattle, sheep, goats, and poultry) and the country's ability to produce five of its most important foods: wheat (the #1 staple food in Afghanistan), rice, maize, potatoes, and chickpeas. Drawing on their global experience, project institutions will begin by providing Afghan farmers with the best technologies currently available that are adapted to local circumstances (e.g., seeds and recommendations for sustainable farming practices and animal husbandry). While this should immediately help farm families become more productive and give urban families greater access to cheaper food, it is still not enough. What the country needs is its own research, technology development, and extension capability so that over the long term, it can generate tailored solutions that precisely meet Afghan farmers' requirements. This project will launch such a research program, rebuild five agricultural experiment stations so that there are sites to work from, and train hundreds of Afghan professionals so that the human resources are fully prepared to take over research at the end of five years. Among the tangible outputs of the project are the following: Improved varieties of the five target crops, that offer at least 10-25% higher yields than traditional Afghan varieties. These improved varieties will perform well under low rainfall conditions, and will be resistant to the main plant diseases common in Afghan environments. The combination of higher yields and disease resistance makes for increased production and grater yield stability, even under difficult farming conditions. New crop management practices that will help farmers increase food production and take better care of their soil and water resources. These productivity-enhancing, resource conserving practices include the use of integrated pest management, minimum tillage, "green manures" (plants that put nutrients back into the soil and help hold water), and bed planting systems. The last technology alone has been shown to reduce water consumption by at least 30% without affecting plant yields. This translates directly into lower costs-and therefore, higher income-for farmers. Interventions to improve animal health, including recommendations for bettering animal nutrition and the provision of a regionally-based "barefoot doctor" approach to treating animal diseases. Since women in Afghanistan are often responsible for dairy production and small-scale livestock production, this project component should benefit them significantly. Improved marketing systems that will guarantee farmers access to improved seeds and agricultural inputs, and provide the opportunity to sell surplus farm production (crops, dairy products, meat and animal pelts). Taken together, these measures represent increased food production and food security for Afghans in both rural and urban areas, increased income for Afghan farm families, and a more sustainable future for Afghanistan. At the end of five years-political stability permitting-it is expected that the project will have reached at least half of Afghanistan's farmers with improved crop varieties tailored to local needs, and the other technologies and services described above. Given the many unknowns facing the project today, it is difficult to estimate the overall potential impact of the project. However, a conservative estimate of the added value from increased wheat and rice production alone is on the order of US$44 million per year. In other words, by the end of the project period, one year's worth of increased production will exceed the total cost of the project. What makes us think we can accomplish this ambitious task? The project will draw on the capacities of five global agencies with long track records in generating high-impact solutions for the world's resource-poor farmers. Two of the partner institutions-the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT, the lead project Center) and the International Rice Research Institute-were the creators and promoters of the improved wheat and rice varieties that brought about the "green revolution" in South Asia in the late 1960s and 1970s, which Afghanistan benefited from as well. These two research centers will work with the International Potato Center, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, and the Food and Agriculture Organization, to deliver the project services described above and in the document that follows. More importantly, the project will work extensively with the Afghan Ministry of Agriculture and its research and extension services, as well as with local groups including farmers' organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) involved in agricultural relief and reconstruction. Collaboration with these on-the-ground, village level groups will allow the project to deliver its products and services to their ultimate destination, Afghanistan's farmers. The total cost of the five-year project is US$37.5 million.29 pages